In correlational studies children who eat large amounts of p

In correlational studies, children who eat large amounts of processed meat have been found to enter puberty earlier than do children in vegetarian households. You are beginning a longitudinal study of 150 families with >2 children each, 50 of which are vegetarian, 50 that eat large amount of processed meat, and 50 of which consume only organic/grass fed meat. You make two statements. First, “synthetic hormones in industrially-raised meat mimic human hormones leading to early onset of puberty”. Second, “children eating organic meat will enter puberty later than those eating processed meat”. Your first statement is an example of:

a) a comparative experiment

b)a prediction

c) a theory

d) an observation

e) an hypothesis

Solution

The answer is : e) a hypothesis.

The first statement is a possible explanation of the observation that - children who eat large amounts of processed meat have been found to enter puberty earlier than do children in vegetarian households. So this statement is a hypothesis.